


Rager Teenager

by smallblip



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, College Student Hange Zoë, College Student Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff, i guess this counts as
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:36:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26862256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smallblip/pseuds/smallblip
Summary: Hange is a full time Astrophysicist in college, part time Astrologer (Tarot and all). Levi thinks Hange is the best thing since sliced bread, Hange IS the best thing since sliced bread, Erwin is a philosophical jock, Nanaba makes big lasagna, Mike is a cool dude who watches romcoms with his gal pals, and Petra is occasional team mom. OR self-indulgent college!AU-☀-Levi looks from the skies to the stars in Hange’s eyes, 'so... is that what we are?'“Huh?” Hange manages, because it’s 5 in the morning and she is struggling to keep her mind and body aligned.'Binary stars.' Levi clarifies.
Relationships: Levi & Hange Zoë, Levi/Hange Zoë
Comments: 12
Kudos: 85





	Rager Teenager

The streets are dead. It’s 1 in the morning when Levi walks into the 24 hour supermarket. He mostly does his grocery shopping at night- no crowds, no queues. Just the quiet hum of air conditioning and a few stoners perusing the candy section. 

Levi turns the aisle and collides into someone- eyes frantic, darting behind glasses. Levi catches the family sized chocolate bar as it falls from under her baggy jacket. 

The girl stares at him, slightly mortified. And soon the cogs are turning again- she grabs his arm and runs, pulling him past the aisles and out the front of the store. It’s late in the night and they go unnoticed. 

Levi stands, mouth slightly agape, bunch of bananas in his hand, adrenaline pulsing yellow through his veins.

“What the-“ but before he can finish his sentence-

“Now you can't tell on me!” The girl says, grinning as she peels the chocolate bar from his hands. Her face peeks through her hood- glint in her hazel eyes, stray hair poking out to frame her face. Levi watches as she turns the next alley, out of sight. 

“- fuck...” he manages in his next exhale. 

☀☀☀  
  


“Come on Hange! It’s been so long! All the world’s your buffet!” 

Hange knows it is probably the alcohol talking, but from the way Nanaba nudges clumsily into her side, she realises she had underestimated just how much of a lightweight her friend was. 

“But Nanaaaaa...” Hange whines, indulgent, eyes gleaming.

“But Hangeeeee...” Nanaba mimics, throwing in a pout for good measure.

“Fine...” Hange gives in after a sulk-off and her friends at the table cheer. “Now who‘s lucky enough to romance me tonight?” 

“What about that guy?” Mike points, perfectly random, at a man old enough to be Hange’s father. “Pretty sure he’s faculty staff...” Hange deadpans. He proceeds to point out another, and another, and another. All impossibly worse than the previous one.

“”’M gonna ask him.” Hange points at a guy sitting by himself at the counter, suddenly keen on giving her friends a good show. All for good fun. 

“Yeah... good idea... since you’ve been staring at him for the better half of tonight...” Mike finishes his beer and reaches for Moblit’s, the latter already abandoning alcohol for tap water. Nanaba chortles. 

“Watch and learn boys... M’lady...” Hange tips her imaginary hat at Nanaba, the latter now breaking into laughter again. She stretches, cracking her knuckles for showmanship, and strides over to the man. 

Hange approaches, heart racing, and she calms herself, “you’ve got this Hanjo, whatever happens, you’ll get a good laugh out of it.” 

She taps the stranger on the shoulder and immediately pulls back in shock. 

“Hey!” The point at each other, recognition soon turning into a scowl on the stranger’s face. It’s banana guy from the supermarket. It’s a work of pure comedy Hange thinks, a trick of the universe. Hange also makes a mental note that she needs new glasses more than she had previously thought. 

And she breaks into a smile- all teeth, eyes disappearing behind cheeks. The stranger almost softens. _Almost_.

They leave the bar for somewhere quieter, and Hange hears unrestrained whoops from where her friends are sat. She waves them off and tries to shush them, but Mike is now whistling through his teeth so loudly that the whole bar falls silent. Hange’s offers an embarrassed thumbs up. 

And soon they were alone. Levi doesn’t quite remember the walk from the pub to the curb in front of a convenient store a block way. But he texts Erwin and Oluo that he will be late. He watches as the girl inhales her ice cream- this time, paid for.

“So... Did you enjoy the bananas?” She has the nerve to ask, wiping her mouth on the sleeve of her flannel. Levi feels his eye twitch. 

“I waited for them to ripen, then I forgot about them...” he answers, absolutely transfixed by the incredulity of the situation. 

“Classic bananas... Am I right?” she tips her head back laughing and continues, “Nanaba, my friend... um... the blonde girl at my table? She always tells me how bad I am at small talk... but god... hearing it now in real life just... wow...”

Levi knows what she means, he is witnessing it for himself, in real time. What he doesn’t understand is- “What? Who the fuck are you? Wha-“

“Oh right introductions! I’m Zoë Hange. My friends call me Hange.” 

Levi pinches the bridge of his nose. He hadn’t known what to expect when he followed Hange out of the pub, and up until that moment, Levi hadn’t even considered the possibility of seeing her again. But where Hange is going with this conversation, this hadn’t been it. 

“Look. I had to pay rent and then I spent so much on these new books I couldn’t help myself! But I really really really wanted some snacks. Besides I took from a chain store, so I guess morally that’s... okay? Also! I checked the sensors before and they were faulty, i would never risk getting you in real trouble. And I got a new job so looks like I’ll never have to do it again!” Hange rambles, and a fuse in Levi’s brain blows.

“Stop. Stop talking. This is ridiculous... You are ridiculous...” Levi, on his best days, is about as eloquent as a sack of potatoes. He looks at Hange, really looks at her- takes in her glasses perched slightly askew on her nose, the mess of her hair bundled in a rushed ponytail, the stupid sparkle in her eyes, her stupid smile, and he thinks maybe this is all not real. A glitch in his regular simulation maybe. 

“And you are-“ 

“Levi.”

“Levi...” Hange tests, as if tasting something foreign, something new, “Cool. Could you just do me a favour... Just... Don’t tell Nanaba... She wouldn’t take it well... She-“

“Look,” Levi cuts her off before she goes off on another tangent, “Hange right?” Hange nods, “mmhmm?”. 

“Right,” another sigh, “I don’t know you people. Why would I even think of telling on you?”

Hange chuckles, indulgent and bright.

“I’m enjoying this...” she says, vague.

“What is 'this'?” Levi raises a brow.

A shrug. Another smile.

“Guess we'll just have to find out.”

It’s an hour into the conversation, and Levi cancels on his friends. Hange follows suit, letting her friends know she probably wouldn’t be going back to the pub. “We weren’t expecting you to?” Moblit replies, and Hange stifles a giggle. 

They are in the same university, which explains bumping into each other in a bar on campus. Hange is enrolled in Astrophysics, to which Levi says, “so you’re a witch?” Part sceptical, and part genuinely confused. 

Hange laughs, amused, “I think you’re thinking Astrology? But you’re in luck! I dabble in that too!” Hange fishes around her bag, consolidating the deck of cards in her hands. “Wanna watch me do a reading?” 

And Levi thinks maybe it’s pointless to say no now. Now that he has spent over an hour sitting with her on the streets, talking to her about absolutely nothing. Now that he has broken a smile at her stupid jokes and she seems genuinely amused at his brusque responses. “Yeah sure. Whatever,” he says, realising that she has already laid the cards out. 

“I’m a bit too drunk and lazy for a three card spread. Let’s keep this light and breezy.” 

“What lies ahead of Levi and Hange’s burgeoning relationship?” She says, fingers dancing atop the deck in an attempt at mystique.

Levi scoffs, “does this actually work?” 

“Don’t know... It’s a good party trick though... Now stop offending the deck and pick a card.” 

Levi rolls his eyes and pulls a card.

“Look Levi! It’s The Lovers! How quaint!” Hange takes the card from Levi and she’s guffawing now, her head tossed back and hands slapping at her thigh.

“This is ridiculous...” Levi says once again, in what may be his fifth time tonight. He hopes the heat in his face doesn’t show. 

Hange clears her throat, “The Lovers card. Doesn’t necessarily mean romantic love. It more generally represents meaningful relationships.” She beams at him, “looks like it’s destiny, Levi!” 

☀☀☀

Levi thinks it’s ironic that in one night he ends up talking with a girl about destiny and he will probably never see her again because they forget to exchange numbers. He tries to push all feelings of being the biggest idiot in the world out of his head, and barely makes it to the end of the week. He also puzzles over why he feels so strongly about this, why it mattered so much to him in the first place. People drunk discuss destiny all the time. Erwin has probably done it. What does he _not_ talk about when he’s drunk that’s the real question. But Levi had sat on the grimy curb with her for hours, listening to her talk, and it had felt like he’d known her his whole life. He felt comfy even- and Levi is not a comfy person. So he thinks maybe it means something. 

And it happens again-

Because that’s what they say don’t they? That third time’s the charm?

It’s a second hand bookstore this time, piled with dust and termites. And usually Levi wouldn’t think to enter, but textbooks are expensive and he could not for the life of him find this particular book on any of the illegal download sites. 

And he sees her reading behind the counter, frowning as she pores over the book. Relief floods his system in cathartic fashion. 

“Hange?”

And she looks up, shaking off her dazed expression as she adjusts her glasses higher on her nose.

“Levi?” Her face lights up instantly, “thank you sweet Jesus son of god!” She faces her palms to the sky in mock prayer. “I didn’t get your number the other day!” She says, feet pattering excitedly. She is already scribbling something on a piece of receipt. She gives it to Levi, “in case we forget again.” 

“So! What will you be needing today?” 

Hange finds the book for Levi, and introduces him to Mike, only because Mike’s plan to be inconspicuous and observe the pair from the sidelines had been disrupted by his own incessant sneezing. Mike is taller than anyone has reason to be, and because of that, very good at reaching the top shelves. He also has allergies. Levi and Mike bond over their distaste for dust. 

“You should come over later. Nanaba’s making lasagna. There’s always too much. We end up eating it for days.” Hange is surprised that Mike is the one offering. Although he’s nice and not completely unfriendly, he’s not usually one to take initiative. She’s equally surprised when Levi accepts. 

She slaps on a staff discount on his textbook and he comes over later in the evening. 

Levi is awkward and he doesn’t take to people easily, or rather, it’s difficult for people to take to him. He knows this from experience. But Hange is there, explaining every inside joke to him and she lets him ease into a comfortable silence. 

Nanaba watches him at first, cautious like a woodland creature about to make a crossing. Watches as he frowns and scowls. Watches as he bickers with Hange, the latter obviously enjoying getting a reaction out of him. And also watches as he moves the glass out the way when Hange’s hands stray dangerously close as she tells a story. Watches him smile at their jokes. Catches his gaze lingering on Hange when she laughs. She figures maybe Levi isn’t bad at all. Besides, Levi thanks her for the lasagna and tells her it’s really good. Although his face betrays no emotion, he’s polite and nice enough, and Nanaba packs him two meals worth of Lasagna in a lunchbox to take home. 

“I did this for you.” Mike had said gravely into Hange’s ear when Levi had arrived that night. But now, stuffed to the brim with lasagna and face hurting from smiling, Mike thinks maybe this is his best idea to date. 

  
☀☀☀

It starts out slow and uncoordinated, but they soon work out a pattern. Hange has Levi's class schedule saved in her phone and he has hers memorised. They meet in between classes at the cafe near the Humanities building, the one with the best coffee and the free refills for tea. Levi watches as Hange drinks more coffee than the recommended amount for any average human being. 

And they work more detail into the pattern. They study in the library after school, and the library becomes Hange's room when the librarian had to shush them one too many times for talking. And Levi learns that Hange is smart. Really, really smart. She verbalises her essay outlines to him and he just gawks because he's in awe, really. The extra chair now sits permanently in Hange's room, at the side of the study desk. 

Hange has her feet propped on Levi's lap, and Levi makes a face, "Hange. You calculate the mass of fucking stars, but you can't grasp the concept of personal space?" 

But her mind is somewhere else and she doesn't dwell on Levi's words. "Speaking of the mass of fucking stars... A lot of the time in Astrophysics we learn the masses of stars because they're in Binary star systems... They are two stars orbiting a common centre, so we calculate their orbits to find out all these things. Pretty cool huh?" She says, and Levi doesn't dwell on the fact that her toes are plucking absently at the fabric of his jeans where his knees are. 

He thinks about Binary stars for a moment- two stars orbiting a common centre. He files it for storage at the back of his mind, sure that there's a metaphor in there somewhere.

Hange moves to work on the bed later in the night. It's dangerously close to deadlines and they both decide perhaps it would be safe to pull an all-nighter. But Hange's move to the bed could only mean one thing. She's nodding off and Levi thinks maybe it's best to stop waking her. She's got time, and besides, she's really really smart, so she'll manage. He picks Hange's glasses off her face and folds them on the side table. Levi considers crawling into bed with her, he could cram himself near the edge of the bed. It's just sleeping. But Hange is lying there, curled up against where he can fit. And Levi’s stomach flips unceremoniously. He can feel his face heating and he thinks maybe it’s easier to sleep on the floor? He can grab one of Hange's pillow and it’s not uncomfortable and it’s definitely far less complex and confusing. 

When he wakes up, he feels the weight of the duvet over him. Levi tries to blink the sleep out of his eyes, because he's sure something isn't right, there's a warmth radiating from something beside him and he wants to find out what's wrong. He freezes up when he hears a "Mmmm... Morning..." from where Hange is curled up beside him. Levi is quick and he sits up before Hange is fully conscious. "Why did you..." Levi starts, "the bed... The floor..." he says, eloquent. 

"I felt bad... Decided to join you..." she says. And even with sleep lines sprawled on her face and insufficient sleep for proper functioning, Hange is smiling, and Levi thinks even from where he is the floor, it's far too complex and confusing to process.

"I'm gonna go take a shit in your bathroom now." Levi says, because he no longer knows how to be. And Hange howls with laughter. 

☀☀☀

They are watching a movie in the living room. Mike is washing the dishes because Levi and Hange made dinner. Nanaba has her nose buried in a book she has to finish for her essay. And Hange has her head on Levi's lap. The movie is long and terrible and really, nobody is watching. Hange rolls back on Levi's lap, and she's facing him now. He looks down at her, frowning. "Hi." she says, reaching toward his face. She is moving too much and it's causing friction somewhere and Levi feels heat pooling at his cheeks. He snatches both her hands in his. “Shut up! Stop wriggling!” he hisses and thanks the gods that nobody is paying attention to their little commotion. She fights back against him, deciding that maybe she doesn’t have the willpower to finish whatever is playing on the screen. Levi rolls her off the couch and she lands with a thump. 

"Hange. Stop tormenting Levi." Nanaba says, but she doesn't look up from her book. 

"I got pushed!" Hange says, childish. 

Nanaba hums, non-committal. Levi smirks at Hange, but slides down the couch anyway to join her on the floor. 

They bicker some more when Hange scoots in closer to him. But in the end Levi relents. Because it's not like he particularly minds? And this is Hange- Hange who holds Nanaba's hand when they are out, Hange who hugs Mike's waist. So Levi doesn't overthink it when she treats him with the same gentleness and affection. The movie is long and terrible. Levi and Hange take turns to comment on it, and Levi thinks nobody has ever made him laugh this hard. 

☀☀☀

  
Levi gets invited to go to the club. It’s a scrabble society event, courtesy of Nanaba. 

“Scrabble society?” 

Even from a room away, Nanaba smells his scepticism and shouts a defensive, “it’s a very cool, very legitimate society!” 

“They do know how to turn up...” Hange laughs. 

It’s 2am and Hange had been right. They had gone so hard at pre-drinks that most of them hadn’t even made it to the club. They dance and in their combined stupor, Levi hadn’t realised they had been holding hands. But it’s 3am and the music turns to shit and Hange physically cannot handle more dancing, so they leave Nanaba with her new scrabble society recruits and make for the exit. When the air hits, the hand in his becomes dazzlingly obvious. 

They pass the smoking corner when someone calls after Hange. “Well if it isn’t Zoë Hange!” 

Levi turns and his gaze settles on a man- tall, pretty good looking by anyone’s standards. Hange’s hand slips from his she clenches her fists by her sides. Her entire body tenses, lips set to a fine line. The hurt brimming in her eyes doesn’t go away as she says, “didn’t know they let assholes into the club”.

He’s turning his attention on Levi now- “So... You’re the new boyfriend... What scary stories has Hange told you about me?” 

“Leave him out of this.” 

“Awww come on Hange, just having a conversation here... No hard feelings? I see you moved on just fine!” 

At that, Hange squares up, putting her hair up in a ponytail.

“Hange...” Levi says, a steadying hand on her arm, “let’s go...”. She is looking at him now, he feels her relax into his touch. And they are already heading away-

“Good luck with her... She’s a fucking handful...”

And at that, Levi releases his grip on Hange’s arm. 

She decks him on his mouth, and he stumbles back. He yells something after them, mouth bloodied, and Hange turns back one last time to examine her handiwork. She grins like a Cheshire. 

“Hey... You alright?” Levi decides maybe they’ve made it close enough to her house to break the silence. 

“Yeah... Sorry you had to be there for all that...” 

The air is chilly and she is tucked into his side, even though she is taller than he is and it makes for a silly walk. 

“Enjoyed myself... Watched you take a bitch out,” Levi smirks and she giggles, straightening with pride. 

“Not too shabby huh...” 

Levi laughs a breath through his nose. The streetlights leading up to her house are out and they take efficient strides. 

They are in her room and before he can ask her anything else, Hange kisses him. She doesn’t hesitate sliding her tongue past his lips and Levi lets out a moan. He feels all his senses run on overdrive. Levi wants more and more and more, because maybe Hange’s relentless teasing, the way they had come together like a wave crashing into shore, all of that had been building up to this moment. Hange kisses him hard, palms sliding under his shirt. Levi wants more and more and more but Hange’s teeth tugs at skin, and she forces her hurt down his throat. And Levi wants to ignore it, but he feels Hange’s lips tremble. 

“Hange...” Levi says quietly, steadying hands finding their way on her shoulder. 

“I... I’m sorry...” her voice is raw and broken and Levi aches. “It’s okay...” he offers, “it’s okay if you don’t wanna-“

“It's not... It's just... Maybe... Not yet. It’s... a lot right now...”

He thinks he understands maybe. Alcohol and adrenaline make for a nasty brew. 

“What happened?” He finally manages to ask, ambiguous. But Hange knows.

“Dated him for a year. Typical shitty relationship. Didn’t realise how bad it was because I just thought... I don’t know what I thought... I think I liked him you know? Had a stupid crush and didn’t realise he was always pointing things out. One day it would be my nose... the next it would be something I said... Then he cheated and made me think it was my fault. But I saw it for myself, caught them going at it and everything. And that‘s that...” 

“Sounds like a real piece of shit...” Levi says, “should’ve had a go at him too...” 

“You could probably kill him with one punch...” Hange grins. Although Levi is small, he makes efficient use of his body. 

Hange is so close now that he feels the ghost of her breath against his skin. He feels her warmth radiating under the covers. “I’m sorry he hurt you...” Levi offers because he’s not that good at comforting people. He wants to go on, he has already made a list in his head- _I’m sorry he said something about your nose, about the stuff you say, I’m sorry he made you feel like you weren’t good enough._ But he doesn’t. Instead he frowns, genuinely bewildered as to why someone could say something like that about Zoë Hange. 

But Hange hums a reply anyway. She’s smiling now, hand reaching to cup Levi’s cheek. She murmurs another apology and falls asleep with her head against his chest. 

And Levi aches. He thinks about what this all means. But he is a moth, circling Hange’s flame, helpless, irrevocably akratic. His feathered wings singing, melting under the heat.

☀☀☀ 

They barely speak for a week. Levi had not meant for it to last quite as long. Levi had been giving non-committal replies to Hange’s texts, and he feels bad really. But he has never been good with words and he had wanted a day or two to himself, figure things out for a bit. Untangle himself from the knot of feelings that had accumulated since Hange came into his life. And Hange gets the message, she stops trying to reach him after a while. 

Until a house party of some sort. Almost everyone had been invited. Probably an overstatement, but from the looks of it...

Levi is on a couch, sinking where his body comes into contact with the fabric. He constantly reminds himself not to rest his foot where the salsa has stained the carpet, but judging from the reddish stain on his sock, something went wrong somewhere. He stops noticing how grimy the whole situation is after his third shot of tequila- _just to get things started_ \- someone had said. Levi occasionally joins in on the conversation Erwin is having with this other boy- Jean? Eren? Could be the both of them, sitting on the other couch perpendicular to them. First years from the looks of it. Levi watches as Eren and Jean bicker about Kant, with Erwin contributing where the two lacked. Complete idiots. But Levi gets off his high horse when the third mention of “Kant” makes him laugh. He blames the alcohol. 

“Looking for someone?” Petra asks as she sets the bottle on the glass table and sits herself down beside Levi. “No?” Levi answers uselessly, pouring himself another drink. The look in his eyes betray him. 

He scans the living room again, the sea of bodies, for one that even vaguely resembles Hange. 

And Levi sees her- bright eyes; brightness. She is standing with Nanaba and Mike, and a few others he doesn’t recognise. 

Hange catches him looking and she smiles even brighter, waving animatedly at him. Levi’s gaze trails after Hange as she leans in to whisper something in Nanaba’s ear before leaving the group and heading towards the back of the house. Levi excuses himself and follows. Thankfully Erwin is occupied in another thought experiment with the first years and Petra has wandered off to chat with her coursemates, having grown bored of Erwin’s philosophical musings. 

They meet in the kitchen. 

“I knew you'd be here.” Levi says, almost proudly. He forgets to hide how excited he sounds and Hange laughs, “I'm glad you found me.” 

Hange laces their fingers together, and Levi freezes. Every nerve ending in his body firing at once. “We could dance...” Hange’s voice is a whisper and she smells faintly of alcohol, a good enough amount. 

And all Levi can do is follow, his heart about to burst out of his chest. Besides, that’s what people do at parties right? They dance with the person they like when they haven't found a way to tell them/are too scared to even try?

Hange leads Levi to the empty space where people are dancing to the music playing from someone's laptop, too drunk to care what‘s playing, just moving feels good. Amidst the brush of bodies and the spilling of drinks on socks, they dance, never once letting go of each other's hands. It’s nerve-wrecking, yes, but Levi thinks Hange is beautiful- the way she laughs when she messes up the rhythm and when they bump into each other. 

The music deteriorates after the fifth, sixth song and Hange pulls him out of the crowd and leads him upstairs, grabbing a half-finished bottle of wine along the way. All the rooms are taken by newly formed couples so Hange settles for the bathroom. “I hope you don't mind...” she says, sheepish. 

The bathroom is large, black and white tiled floors and a bath. What‘s there to mind? The space? The fact that it‘s a bathroom? 

They lock the door behind them and Hange eases herself on the floor, taking a swig from the bottle and passing it to Levi. “After a while some quiet is nice.” Hange sighs and rests her head against the bathtub. Levi sits beside her and hums a reply.

“I'm so glad you found me, Levi...” Hange says, absentminded. They drink more and listen as people come and go after trying at the handle of the door. 

“Don’t worry... this isn’t the only bathroom... there has to be at least 5 in this goddam mansion...” 

Hange had been exaggerating but the place is huge, more fancy than any student house any of them had been to. It‘s Moblit’s house- _right the guy who poured Levi the shots_. He is Hange’s lab partner who had apparently been broken by the stress of mid-terms, broken enough to throw a party with more booze than anyone can manage. 

“Come on, let's dance. It's the wine, I can never keep still after.” Hange announces, a little too loud, unguarded and clumsy as she struggles to pull Levi from the ground. Hange fumbles with her phone, and a tune plays from the speaker as she set it on the sink. They hold hands and dance- more wine- then more dancing. 

Levi hooks his hand around the back of Hange’s neck and pulls her close, pressing their foreheads together. They are sweaty, and if he had been sober it would have been gross and unacceptable. Also Hange’s glasses are jutting against his face awkwardly. But at least he’s looking into her eyes now, and not up at her at an awkward angle. Although she’s so close he’s having trouble focusing. And the music from down the hall clashes with theirs. It‘s funny really. 

“What's so funny four eyes?” Levi asks, gentle. His fingers reach to brush a stray hair from Hange’s face. 

“Oh everything...” her laugh easing into a giggle as she feels fingers trace across her cheek. 

“Do you do this a lot?” 

“Dance with someone in the bathroom of my lab partner’s house at a party he may or may not regret throwing in the morning?” Hange beams. She lets a moment pass, watching with satisfaction as Levi scoffs, amusement chasing across his face. 

“I never felt the need to.” Hange continues. Levi's eyes are blown wide for a millisecond and Hange can see how nervous he is and something in her stomach flutters.

They kiss, lips stained with wine and hair smelling like cigarettes and late nights. 

They finally open the door after a bout of furious knocking. 

“Hange? Fuck you! I need to-“ the angry voice of the angry girl is replaced by retching as she dashes to lean over the toilet, her friend following quickly behind to hold her hair. 

The scene sends Hange and Levi into a fit of laughter. She tugs on Levi’s wrist as they make their way past a thinning group of people, “you wanna walk me?” 

Walking is an overestimation of their abilities at 3 in the morning. They stumble most of the journey, Hange almost tripping them both over every step of the way. Levi holds her close- for practical reasons, so he assures himself. But it’s late and nobody’s asking. Levi recognises her house, even though the city hasn’t fixed the lights on her street, knows the route by heart. Her overgrown lawn threatening to spill out the fence— _good for the bees_ — she had said. 

She stops them at the door, “wanna come in?”

He nods. 

Then they are in her room. They had taken turns to shower and Levi is now sitting on the edge of her bed in her well loved Mars Attacks t-shirt and sweatpants that are too Long for him, fiddling with the edge of her duvet. 

“Hey...” he says, a bit too nervously, as she walks in, toweling her hair dry. 

“Hey yourself...” she teases. 

She waves her hand and Levi scoots in, making space for her on the bed. 

“You’re not gonna dry your hair first?” Levi says, pretending to be surprised.

“I don’t do it sober, cannot, will not, should not have to do it drunk...” she places her glasses on the side table and turns the lights off. 

“God four eyes... You’re a fucking mess...” he says as if off a script. This is just something they do. Back and forth, back and forth. Little digs that are proxy for affection. 

It is silent for a while. Levi waits to adjust to the darkness, and soon he can make out her face, duvet tucked up to her chin.

“I've missed you Levi... You disappeared for a week. I was worried.” Hange breaths out a sigh she had been holding in. 

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean it.” 

_I got stupid_. Levi had wanted to say.

“I thought you were mad at me...” 

“No. I’m just an idiot.” _I’m just an idiot, don’t mind me-_ Levi hears how stupid it sounds, but it doesn’t matter because Hange is laughing. 

“Okay... Then let’s never not see each other ever again.” Hange says, pressing her face into Levi’s side and breathing in deep. 

Levi is too tired to think, so he presses a chaste kiss on the top of her head. Hange smells like shampoo. 

“That would be best.” He answers. 

“Ah... I had this big plan to make you feel bad... Guess I couldn’t bring myself to do it... But the next time you’re a dick just know this...” 

Levi waits for Hange to finish her threat, but soft snores tell him that that was probably all to it. The finger that had been pointed solidly, accusatory at his chest now curling into a loose fist. “You idiot...” he whispers, kissing her forehead one more time for good measure. 

☀☀☀

“So what do you wanna do today?” Hange asks when they both agree the sun is too high up in the sky to not be awake. 

“Whatever. I don’t mind.” Levi says. He’s never one for plans, besides he’s happy just doing whatever Hange wants. 

“Hmmm but I wannna do what you want...” 

Levi sighs, “Fine...” and he thinks for a bit. “We could go to the museum.” 

“Ah! Levi the learned man, scholar, and lover of culture!” Hange teases but she leaves out the fact that she knows Levi had seen the exhibition flyer tacked to her notice board. 

She feels the warmth deep in her bones as they peruse they exhibition. She sees Levi squint at the exhibition placards, sees him frown and linger on the words. He's struggling, and Hange is sure that astronomy really isn't Levi's thing. But he goes along with her as she points and gasps and taps his shoulder with excited exclamations of "Levi! Look!" 

And she half dreads that he'll finally snap, finally tell her he's bored and he doesn't care. But he doesn't give any indication that he's going anywhere. So Hange eases into herself, and she stops apologising for her enthusiasm. They spend so much time in the museum that they are the only people in the last exhibition room. There's a moment of darkness before the projection loops. 

The room bursts into a sea of stars. Hange gasps, eyes going wide in awe. Levi sees her fingers reaching tentatively across the bench, absentmindedly searching. Levi places his hand in the path of her wandering fingers, palm up so his fingertips brush against hers, and Hange interlocks her fingers with his. There’s a soft smile on her face throughout the projection and Levi doesn’t notice he’s staring until she turns to face him. He snaps out of his trance but it’s too late. The projection is playing the credits now, there’s nowhere reasonable to look. 

Like a cornered animal, his body prepares to fight. And so he does. He leans in closer to Hange. In debonair fashion, Levi miscalculates and their noses bump. “Oh...” he says, suave, mentally kicking himself for being so clumsy with anything tender. Hange chuckles breathlessly. She pushes her glasses to rest on the top of her head and realigns her face to Levi’s. She brushes her lips against his. 

“Ha... What are we? A couple of teenagers?” Hange teases in an aspirational attempt to disguise her nervousness, “Levi... Who would’ve thought you were one for-“ 

He threads his fingers in her hair and guides her head forward. “Shut up.” He says before kissing her again. Hange’s lips are soft and she’s a good kisser and Levi thinks he could get used to this. When they pull apart, Hange is breathless and she’s looking at him. Levi feels something in him with the intensity of the sun. He leans in and presses another kiss to her nose and she giggles. “Yes we can watch it again,” Levi says. 

Hange is laughing now, hearty and warm, “I didn’t say anything!”

“Didn’t have to.” Levi smiles.

The projection starts up again. 

They stay in exhibition until the announcement for closing plays. The walk back to the station is quiet and Levi tries not to overthink the fact that they are still holding hands. That they are sober and holding hands is novel and shiny. Hange breaks the silence with an apologetic, “sorry my hand is so sweaty...” And Levi knows. He feels her wet hand against his cold palm. But it makes him calmer somehow, let’s him know they are in this together. Whatever _this_ is. “I don’t mind.” He says. And he means it. She leans her weight into Levi and they sway a little. 

“Ah Levi! You’re so nice!” She exclaims, and Levi scoffs. “Don’t worry I won’t tell anyone. Your secret is safe with me!” 

“Keep this up and I won’t be so pleasant...” 

Hange guffaws and Levi thinks this simulation is toeing the lines of a dream sequence. This incorrigible mess of a girl with her wet hands- the very definition of sunshine; and Levi who is constantly balancing between a headache and vertigo when he’s around her. 

They order takeout on the train, timing the delivery for when they reach Hange’s house. They highfive when they turn into Hange's street and see the deliveryman pull up in front of the house. 

And Levi wonders if this is what couples do on a Saturday night, unfinished takeout cooling on the kitchen counter before going in the fridge, both of them in their sweatpants and t-shirts, talking and laughing like a pair of idiots in Hange’s room. Levi’s previous experience with _good_ relationships only go as far as the quizzes and articles Petra sends him out of jest. 

“For your reference:” she would type to go along with the link. Sometimes they appear in his email as well. 

“Fuck off.” Is the reply he mostly settles with, although he knows that it would only embolden his friends who live to get a rise out of him. 

_The top 10 characteristics of a good relationship, 10 things all married couples do, 8 signs of a healthy relationship._

Levi would never admit but sometimes he clicks on the links and checks the list off in his head when he thinks about the time spent with Hange. Sometimes he wonders if there's room on the list for a few more. 

☀☀☀

  
A few nights later they find themselves at Levi’s flat. It’s on the other side of campus and it‘s a hassle to travel, so mostly he stays over at Hange’s. It’s late because Hange had insisted on finishing a whole 3000- word essay in one sitting. The library stays open 24/7 this time of year and it’s proving to be the bane of Levi’s existence. 

Levi sneaks Hange into his room. “My housemates are meddlesome,” he explains, as if he hadn’t already told her everything about them, “I’m pretty sure I hear them making bets about you.” 

Hange laughs, “can't wait to meet them!”

“You’ll see them around...” Levi says, almost guilty that Hange has already settled him into her friend group and he hasn’t done the same. But then again, she is good at these things. Good at making people smile, making them feel at home, lighting up a room. 

Levi hadn't expected it to happen at his place. Hange’s room, albeit messy, does seem a more apt college cliche- books and notes strewn everywhere, four or five event flyers pasted on her wall alongside one too many posters- Star charts and sci-fi classics.

Levi’s room does not smell as lived in as Hange’s does. And while he appreciates how organised everything is, the familiarity throws him off a bit. 

Yet despite the minimalism, Hange still manages to topple the bedside lamp as she climbs onto the bed. It lands with a crash. Levi rolls his eyes so far up his head he catches a glimpse of his brain. 

“Levi you okay in there? I’ll be needing the deposit back for the flat so don’t break anything!” 

“Nothing broke...” Levi answers, the thin plaster walls carrying his voice. 

“Yeah okay! I’m going off now. Remember to tell Erwin it’s his turn to clean the bathroom!” 

Levi grunts a reply. 

“Petra!” Hange whispers, so quiet that Levi almost misses it amidst the muffled chatter from the next room. Maybe the prospect of being Levi’s secret excites her, so Hange plays the part. 

“Yeah... Petra...” Levi answers as she joins him on the bed. “She’s going home for the week.” 

Hange is wearing his shirt and a pair of his shorts, and Levi feels his gut squeeze. He catches a glimpse of a spark in her eyes. The same glint she had the first time-

second time-

third time-

\- whenever they meet. 

He watches her from his position- one arm tucked under his head- as she kneels beside him, thinking. 

“What are you thi-“ 

But before he can finish, she is straddling his waist, looking at him carefully, testing, calculating her next move. His hands come to settle on her hips.

They kiss and it's-

lightning. 

There is urgency in Hange’s touches and Levi has no difficulty matching the intensity. Hange slides her hands under Levi’s shirt, guiding it above his head. And then lower, lower still, until she is pushing past the the waistband of his pants. His breath hitches. “Is this okay with you?” Hange asks, almost embarrassed and Levi nods feverishly, pulling her back into their collective heat. 

He regains his train of thought and holds Hange gently by the shoulders, “Is it okay with you?” He reaches out to tuck a stray hair behind her ear and she looks at him- bright-eyed, lips kissed red. His heart races, sure that she can feel it where her hands have come to rest on his chest. She is everything at once, an entire solar system with Levi in orbit. And Levi holds his breath as she considers his question.

“Of course,” Hange says as if the answer had been obvious. “I think you’re really hot...” she chuckles. Hange tilts her head just enough to kiss his palm, and says, serious this time, “I want you, Levi. I like you.” 

He struggles to get her top off from his position and Hange laughs, getting off him to undress. She wriggles her pants onto the floor, and leaves a trail of clothes after her. Levi wants to comment on the mess, thinks maybe the normalcy that comes with banter would soothe his nerves. But he doesn’t. He just stares, utterly transfixed. 

_Venus is so hot it can melt lead... Human beings would never survive..._ It's a fun tidbit that Levi had picked up somewhere in the children's section of the exhibition they had visited. Levi doesn't know why but he thinks of it now. 

“Oh? Are we sharing facts now?” Hange cocks an eyebrow. Her laugh is silvery and Levi just wants to die. Did he really just- 

But Hange kisses him again and he drowns in the heat emanating from her body. She pulls apart just enough to say, “Ah... Levi the learned man, scholar, and... Lover of Zoë.” She beams, fingers stroking his undercut. And Levi shakes his head and laughs, unreserved. 

They've kicked the duvet aside somewhere and Hange is pinned beneath him, gasping syllables of Levi’s name. And Levi thinks maybe this is what it feels like to hold the Sun. To feel every fibre of his being burn. Because Hange is beautiful, and he thinks maybe articles and listicles can’t quite quantify this feeling. 

Like two colliding stars, bursting into bright light, tearing apart space-time, this feels like the spilling of pure gold.

☀☀☀

  
Erwin asks Levi where he has been, because in the past few months he could count the number of times he had seen him with one hand. And the times he had actually seen Levi, the latter had come to the flat merely to get more of his things. 

The only reply he got, however, was the reddening of the tips of Levi’s ears and a “none of your fucking business” that had no edge to it whatsoever. He had never seen Levi so flustered. Erwin thought it was cute. Very cute.

 _Oh no... He’s definitely going to get his heart broken._ Petra had added for a healthy dose of realism. But she was happy for her friend nonetheless. She bookmarks another article to forward to Levi. 

Erwin gets his answer one morning, when he finds a stranger in the kitchen rummaging through the spice cupboard. 

“What are you looking for.” Erwin asks, raising a brow. He folds his arms and leans against the frame of the door. 

The stranger jumps, nearly knocking over the pan of omelette and sausages. “I... I'm sorry I thought everyone left...”

Erwin chuckles. So this is the reason for Levi’s disappearance. Oh this is great. If Levi had a type, this girl- this glorious mess of a girl- would be the perfect embodiment. Erwin Smith you son of a gun, you called it. He had sketched a profile in his head and boy was he spot on. Oh Petra would be so mad to hear. This moment has made him 20 bucks richer. 

“Sorry for scaring you... So... What are you looking for?”

“Um... Would you happen to have any oregano?”

Erwin reaches to the back of the cupboard and hands her the bottle. “Don't think we have oregano, is basil okay?”

“What's the difference?” The stranger asks, genuinely thoughtful. 

Erwin laughs and gives a casual shrug, “who really knows?”

☀☀☀

  
Hange sets breakfast down on the bedside table and gives Levi’s shoulder a gentle squeeze to wake him. Maybe she likes watching Levi sleep. He rarely gets up later than she does, and Hange loves him like this- messy hair, eyes blinking impossibly slow. He murmurs something incoherent and shuffles to the bathroom to brush his teeth. She notices that a stupid smile has settled across her face. 

Hange wonders if this means something. Maybe she has just been watching too much television with Nanaba and Mike. Nanaba got all of them invested in this one sitcom- too many episodes about romance and falling in love and that sort of thing.

“So... I met Erwin...” Hange says as Levi settles himself back under the covers.

Levi shoots up, shoulders tense, eyes narrowing, “what did he say?”

“He says you're in loooooove with me!” Hange clasps her hands together and wriggles her shoulders for effect. 

Levi could lie, he entertains the thought for a second. But he wonders if Hange would know- wonders what good it would do. 

“Tch. Erwin‘s full of shit.”

“Well... Too bad then...” Hange sighs, slumping theatrically. She picks up the tray full of breakfast, and sets it down on Levi’s lap, “I even made breakfast for the both of us...” she pouted, “in bed too...”

The corners of Levi’s lips curve into a soft smile. “Thank you Zoë...” he murmurs, painfully tender, because everything is a little too much for 9am. And Hange blinks, staring at him like he just said/did something incredible. The moment lasts for a second before she hums and settles into cutting herself a hunk of sausage, colour spreading high across her cheeks. Maybe television’s got nothing to do with this.

Levi grabs hold of her as they get ready to leave for campus. “Fuck’s sake Hange, your hair's a rat’s nest,” Levi chides as pulls her to sit (she’s too tall otherwise), and runs his fingers through her hair in an attempt to untangle the knots. He switches to a comb, then puts her hair up in a ponytail. Hange fidgets and cackles, “neat freak...” she shoots back, and Levi tugs lightly at her ponytail. And really he doesn’t quite know why he fusses over her, thinks maybe it’s because Petra has her sitcom playing so loud in the living area when he sits with her to have his tea. One too many episodes about romance and love and that sort of bullshit. 

Hange complains that her clothes smell like cooking and she helps herself to Levi’s jumper. He doesn’t bicker with her anymore about boundaries and personal space and what not. Doesn’t even think twice before throwing her discarded sweater with the rest of his laundry pile.

Television’s probably got nothing to do with this.

☀☀☀

“So... When do I get to meet Hange?” Petra is back and she is sitting on the kitchen counter, toeing playfully at the air. 

Levi shoots daggers at Erwin, who pauses mid-chew. Erwin has the nerve to smirk and Levi thinks maybe his effect on them is wearing thin. This whole Hange business a chip in his armour. 

“You can all come to the pub after the game?” Erwin suggests and Petra groans with every fiber of her being. 

“We are not going there to watch you do another keg stand.” Levi states. The Football team’s celebration nights are always messy, you let a few of them chase a ball and after they behave like barn animals. 

Erwin chuckles, “or we could go to that seminar on Roman domestic architecture... I am a man of culture too.” He says, unabashed. 

“Why don’t we just invite her over for a potluck? Her friends can come too?” Petra suggests, having completely ignored Erwin’s attempts at being helpful. 

And Hange arrives the next evening, Mike, Nanaba, and Nanaba’s gigantic tray of lasagna in tow, carried in as a collective effort. It’s impossibly bigger than the ones she usually makes. They have two desserts because of Mike and Hange’s brownies (“they’re pot brownies”, Hange clarifies), and Levi’s Apple crumble. And Erwin makes a decadent mash. Petra is useless with the cooking but she makes mean cocktails.

Petra takes to Hange immediately, listens to Hange talk her head off about how “Death isn’t a bad card, it can be a good card too! It can stand for new beginnings... Metamorphosis... Stuff like that...” Hange had been right. Tarot is a good party trick. And the metaphor lingers in the air.

In the later part of the night, Petra, Nanaba, and Mike settle for a long and very serious conversation about the sitcom that everyone is on about. And Levi and Hange sit with Erwin. Hange is squished into Levi’s side and if he had been completely honest, the bit of couch they are on is more a love seat than anything. But he’s high out of his mind and Hange is warm and soft by his side. So he doesn’t think before he throws and arm around her shoulder. 

Erwin takes bites out of his brownie in between his sermon about the two theories of time, and linearity and whatever else. And Hange finds herself absorbed in a lively debate with Erwin even though her attention splits at some points to listen to Mike’s surprisingly animated speech on his nuanced hot take of the relationship tropes in the sitcom. Petra and Nanaba are impressed, they exchange looks. Collectively, the whole house is only making partial sense, but it’s good company.

Levi is comfortable in the middle, holding a plate of Apple crumble in his lap. Hange says it’s for them to share, but really, she’s been shoveling spoonfuls into her mouth and Levi loses track completely. From where his head is tilted back against the couch, he rolls his eyes to the side to look at Hange. 

He’s tripping balls and he sees colour behind his lids. He hears bits and pieces of Hange’s argument for the B theory of time- something something multiple timelines something something multiple lives lived simultaneously. 

He thinks about soulmates and wonders how many past lives he has lived with Hange. In a moment ruled purely by sap and sentiment, he hopes that all the Levi-s living across multiple spaces and times never have to go their whole lives without meeting a Hange. 

But it’s only a moment of sentiment, and Hange trips over him with an unapologetic “oops” on the way to get some more mash. “Ouch...” Levi says, delayed. 

☀☀☀

They stay up beyond Nanaba and Mike leaving. Hange swears a string of expletives when she realises that at 5am that same morning Venus and Regulus are visible in the sky. 

“You don’t have to stay up!” She says to Levi. His eyes still hooded as his high fades, eye bags heavy against pale skin. He sighs, exasperated, muttering a “told you to keep a fucking journal”. But he moves without being asked, setting down the rug on the tiny balcony and getting the cushions from the couch. 

“I like your friends, I reallllly like them,” Hange says, the morning air is dewy, and she lifts the duvet off around her shoulder momentarily for Levi to snuggle in. 

“I think Petra wants you to move in permanently,” he sets both mugs of coffee down on the rug, “we also have enough lasagna left over to feed a village.” 

Hange chuckles, taking a well-needed sip of coffee. “Yeah?” She says, rhetorical.

“Look Levi! That’s Venus above, and Regulus below.” She holds his hand and points with his finger. They look like specks to Levi and honestly, he doesn’t get it, but Hange’s excitement is contagious and he loves her like this. 

“Regulus is billions of years old... Did you know ‘Regulus’ means “little king” and it’s the brightest star in the Leo constellation?” Hange says, more a statement than a question and Levi laughs. Why on earth would he know that. 

“Also Regulus looks like a single star, but it’s at least four stars sorted into two Binary star systems! Crazy huh!” 

“Yeah,” Levi says, he looks from the skies to the stars in Hange’s eyes, 'so... is that what we are?' 

“Huh?” Hange manages, because it’s 5 in the morning and she is struggling to keep her mind and body aligned. 

'Binary stars.' Levi clarifies. 

Hange face is breaking into a grin, she’s a little too smug and she’s wriggling her shoulders, a little jig to manage her joy. “Awww Levi you’re such a sap!” And Levi thinks maybe he should kiss her self-satisfied grin away, but she’s blushing now, and she doesn’t comment that Levi is blushing too. 

She turns to him now, as the stars threaten to disappear behind brightening skies. “Yeah...” Hange says, like a whisper. Levi thinks he should say something now. But he finds it so hard to breathe. Besides, words are overrated and between glowering and his “binary stars” one hit wonder, he’s got nothing really. 

So he kisses her later as the skies break into orange and pink. Levi has never thought of himself as a sunrise type of person, but now, watching the colours light Hange’s eyes into embers, he thinks, maybe it isn’t so bad. 

“I love you...” Hange says honestly, almost matter of fact. And he takes all of her in- her hair haphazardly held together in a ponytail, the small hook of her nose, her eyes brilliant and gleaming- and he says it back. 

☀☀☀

It's a friend of a friend's house party and they lock themselves in the bathroom again. It is smaller this time but there is just enough space on the floor. Despite this, Hange is pressed up against Levi like the walls are closing in on them. She has her head against Levi’s shoulder and a bowl of soggy popcorn on her lap. Levi takes another swig of lukewarm beer as he checks the app on his phone. “It says he's coming in 15 minutes.” Levi squints at his screen and rocks his weight to his feet. 

Hange holds Levi tight so her head doesn’t have to leave the comfort of his shoulder. The world is spinning too much. Levi knows that there is a fifty percent chance that Hange might throw up in the cab. But it‘s 4am and Hange’s cheeks are dusted pink and Levi is head over heels in love. 

“So what do you want to do tomorrow night?” Hange asks. Because life is a series of half-baked plans with Levi and she struggles to remember what it had been like before this. Levi thinks maybe it‘s about time they stay in and order takeout. “Good fucking call... ‘m getting too old for this...” Hange slurs as she struggles with the bathroom lock. "I also have work in the morning... I'm covering for Mike..." she groans. But she gets to read all the books she wants and Levi drops by every so often when she has her shifts. She drags him to the back room to make out so it isn't that bad really. 

They are sitting on the curb in front of the house and Hange has her deck of cards out, shuffling lazily. "Are you thinking about your question?" She asks, and Levi nods. He doesn't know why they are doing this now, but Hange had said something about the universe and inspiration and how she had to roll along with it. He picks a card and it's The Sun. 

"What question did you ask?" Hange tries to pry, but Levi doesn't tell. "What does it mean?" He asks.

"It means everything is good and beautiful. Everything is gonna be alright." Hange smiles, sure as the sun. 

"Sounds about right." Levi says. Hange has her legs in his lap and he presses a kiss to her shin. 

“I love you.” Hange says as she drifts off to sleep in the cab. Levi says it back but he’s sure she’s already fast asleep so he says it again the next morning as he reaches to pull her closer. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this is mildly amusing! Makes me happy to write them having a good time. Lemme know!
> 
> Update: I just made a Tumblr! Holla @ me! https://smallblip.tumblr.com/


End file.
